SAINTS OF THE DAY: FEAST DAY ~ FEBRUARY 6TH

MEMORIAL OF SAINT PAUL MIKI AND COMPANIONS, MARTYRS AND SAINT DORATHY, VIRGIN AND MARTYR: FEAST DAY ~ FEBRUARY 6TH: Today, we celebrate the Memorial of Saint Paul Miki and Companions, Martyrs and Saint Dorothy, Virgin and Martyr. 

SAINT PAUL MIKI AND COMPANIONS, MARTYRS: St. Paul Miki, a Japanese Jesuit, and his twenty-five companions were martyred in Nagasaki, Japan. They were the first martyrs of East Asia to be canonized. They were killed simultaneously by being raised on crosses and then stabbed with spears. Their executioners were astounded upon seeing their joy at being associated to the Passion of Christ. St. Paul Miki (1562–1597) and his twenty-five companions, known as the Martyrs of Nagasaki, were crucified for the faith in Nagasaki, Japan, in 1597. A Japanese layman of great nobility and wealth, St. Paul was converted to Christianity by St. Francis Xavier. Although the Christian missionaries did not meet with opposition initially, the Japanese rulers eventually launched a brutal campaign to wipe out its progress. The twenty-six men were forced to march 600 miles to meet their death, crucified on a hill, now known as the Holy Mountain, overlooking Nagasaki. The group included Franciscan and Jesuit missionaries and Japanese converts. They were repeatedly offered freedom if they would renounce Christianity; they all declined. When the march ended the martyrs were tied to crosses. They prayed and sang while Paul Miki preached the Gospel in a loud voice. The martyrs were then stabbed to death while they hung on their crosses. Among those martyred were three Japanese Jesuits: Paul Miki, John Goto, James Kisai; six Franciscans, four of whom were Spanish: Peter Baptist, Martin de Aguirre, Francis Blanco, Francis-of-St.-Michael; one Mexican: Philip de las Casas; and one Indian: Gonsalo Garcia; the other seventeen were Japanese: lay people including a soldier, physicians, and altar boys, catechists, simple artisans and servants, old men and innocent children—all united in a common faith and love for Jesus and his church. All were pierced with a lance like their Savior.

St. Paul Miki, a Jesuit and a native of Japan, has become the best known among the martyrs of Japan. While hanging upon a cross St. Paul Miki preached to the people gathered for the execution: “The sentence of judgment says these men came to Japan from the Philippines, but I did not come from any other country. I am a true Japanese. The only reason for my being killed is that I have taught the doctrine of Christ. I certainly did teach the doctrine of Christ. I thank God it is for this reason I die. I believe that I am telling only the truth before I die. I know you believe me and I want to say to you all once again: Ask Christ to help you to become happy. I obey Christ. After Christ’s example I forgive my persecutors. I do not hate them. I ask God to have pity on all, and I hope my blood will fall on my fellow men as a fruitful rain.” The crowd who witnessed the testimony of St. Paul Miki and his companions would immortalize his words and use them to further spread Christianity in Japan. When missionaries returned to Japan in the 1860s, at first they found no trace of Christianity. But after establishing themselves they found that thousands of Christians lived around Nagasaki and that they had secretly preserved the faith. Beatified in 1627, the martyrs of Japan were finally canonized in 1862 by Pope Pius IX. With their canonization they became the protomartyrs of the whole Far East. Their collective feast day is February 6th.

PRAYER: O God, strength of all the Saints, who through the Cross were pleased to call the Martyrs Saint Paul Miki and companions to life, grant, we pray, that by their intercession we may hold with courage even until death to the faith that we profess. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, for ever and ever ~ Amen🙏

SAINT DOROTHY, VIRGIN AND MARTYR: St. Dorothy, (meaning the gift of God), also known as Dorothea or Dora, a young virgin from Caesarea in Cappadocia (now Turkey), born in 279 AD. St. Dorothy lost her parents as martyrs in the reign of the Diocletian prosecution. She was known for her strong virtues and angelic nature. The Governor of Caesarena sentenced the holy child away, planning to break her faith and steer her away from her strong beliefs. Roman soldiers captured her and treated her cruelly. She was placed on a rack and offered marriage, if she gave into sacrifice, and death if she refused. She claimed the Lord was her only spouse and she would choose death. Two women who had fallen away from their faith were placed in charge of Dorothy. The fierce fire of faith in her own heart repaired their faith and she led them back to Christ. She was sent back to the rack, and as she was being terribly tortured, the Governor was taken aback by the look of serenity and heavenly bliss she wore on her beautiful face. He asked her why she was so peaceful, and she told him “Because I have brought back two souls to Christ, and because I shall soon be in heaven rejoicing with the angels.” Her joy grew as she was pounded in the face and her sides burned with plates of red-hot iron. “Blessed be Thou,” she cried, when she was sentenced to be beheaded because she would not marry or worship idols, – “blessed be Thou, O Thou Lover of souls! Who dost call me to Paradise, and invitest me to Thy nuptial chamber.”

On her way to be executed, a lawyer who had a history of persecuting Christians, named Theophilus, called out to her and mocked her. He challenged her to send him apples and roses from the garden of her “Spouse”. Dorothy promised to grant his request, and she continued on her road to death. She died in 311 AD, Kayseri, Turkey. Just before she died, a child appeared holding three apples and three roses. St. Dorothy told him to bring them to the lawyer. St. Dorothy ascended to heaven, and when Theophilus saw how beautiful the fruit and flowers were, he knew they couldn’t have been grown on this earth, and stopped rejoicing in the Saint’s death. He then saw Christ in this angel child, received the gifts and cried out: “Truly indeed, Christ is God.” He was converted to Catholicism and soon he too died a martyr’s death for publicly confessing the faith. The shrine of St. Dorothy is in Rome. She’s the Patron Saint of: Brewers; brides; florists; gardeners; midwives; newlyweds.

PRAYER: Lord God, Saint Dorothy always pleased You by her chastity and in the end her martyrdom. May she obtain for us merciful pardon for our sins. Amen🙏